Sitka, like many places in Alaska, is on an island and the casual visitor becomes aware very quickly of the fact that there are many in the local population who are of indigenous First Nation stock and who will happily remind tourists very gently that they and their ancestors who have been there for over 10,000 years.
We took the 'Highlights of Sitka' tour, as expected with an indigenous guide, who was something of a gentle giant who showed us round his city.
All the communities are small in Alaska and it makes one realise how low the population density must be in the 49th state.
Our tour took us to the local museum. We were filled with a sense of some foreboding, but it was a very absorbing place. We were then taken for a walk in the nearby woods, a temperate rain forest with such lush vegetation and a reminder that there were 1.3 bears to be found per each square mile in these woods.
After that we returned to town where we visited the Russian Orthodox Cathedral, had a look around the touristy shops and a convenient bar where Mike was able to try one of the local bar delicacies - A Duck Fart (sic).
Bear in mind that Alaska was part of the Russian Empire until the mid-Victorian era when they sold it to the United States for $7.2 million.
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